Guidelines in New York

Voter Registration Requirements

You need to have lived at your present address for at least 30 days before an election.

You can't be in jail or on parole for a felony conviction.

You can't have claimed the right to vote elsewhere.

You can't currently be judged as incompetent by order of a court or competent judicial authority.

If you're a first-time voter who registers by mail, you're required to submit proof of identification either at the time of registration or when you vote. You can include a copy of your identification with your registration form today! Acceptable forms of ID include: a current utility bill, bank statement, valid photo ID, government check, paycheck, or other government document that shows your name and address.

Don't forget -- your state may have additional ID requirements when you go to the polls.

If you have additional questions about voting in New York, please contact:

Board of Elections: (518)-474-6220; info@elections.state.ny.us

Registration Deadline

Postmarked by: 25 days before Election Day.

In person:10 days before Election Day.

Felony Information

Under New York law, if you have been convicted of a felony, you may not register and vote if you are incarcerated or on parole. You may register and vote while you are on probation. For more information, visit the New York Board of Elections' website or call them at 518-473-5086.

Information for Students

You must be a resident of the state in which you register and vote. If you're a student from New York who attends school in another state, you may need to determine whether you're a New York resident or a resident of the state where you attend school. The important thing to keep in mind is that you may only cast your vote in one state.

Here's what New York says about residency: Your residence is the place where you maintain a fixed, permanent and principal home and to which you, whenever temporarily away, always intend to return. In determining residency, you should consider factors such as financial independence, employment, income sources, residence for income tax purposes, age, residence of parents, spouse and children, if any, leaseholds, locations of personal and real property, and motor vehicle and other personal property registration.

If you determine you're a New York resident, but will not be present in this state or will be away from your home district on Election Day, be sure to check the absentee ballot application requirements and deadlines. In addition, New York residents who attend school in-state, but in a different election district, may be eligible to register and vote in the election district where they live while attending school.

To determine whether you're a resident of a different state where you attend school, be sure to check that state's residency requirements.

Identification Information

First-time voters who registered by mail may need to show ONE of the following:

A valid photo ID, or

Current utility bill, or

Bank statement, or

Pay stub, or

Government check, or

Other government document that shows the name and address of the voter.

Same Day Registration

No

Early Voting Information

If you can't make it to the polls on Election Day, you can vote early in person or by mail if you meet certain requirements.

To request an absentee ballot by mail, your request must be postmarked by at least 7 days before the election. In person, you need to request an absentee ballot by the day before Election Day. Your ballot needs to be postmarked by the day before the election if returned by mail, or delivered in person on or before Election Day

You can only vote absentee in New York if you meet ANY ONE of the following requirements:

Be unavoidably absent from your county or, if a resident of the city of New York absent from said city, on Election Day; or

Unable to appear at the polls due to illness or disability; or

A patient in a Veterans' Administration Hospital; or

Detained in jail awaiting Grand Jury action or confined in prison after conviction for an offense other than a felony